The Slave Statistics consist of lists of slaves owned as of 1 November 1864, the date when the Constitution of 1864, which abolished slavery in Maryland, took effect. In the hope that the federal government would compensate former slaveholders, the General Assembly in 1867 authorized the compilation of records to establish slave ownership and the value of slave property. The governor appointed a commissioner of slave statistics for each county with a term in office of two years. Former slave owners furnished the commissioner with descriptive information on each slave for whom they claimed ownership. The commissioner then recorded the lists and filed the records with the clerk of the circuit court of his county. (Ch. 189, Acts of 1867; Ch. 385, Acts of 1868). Entries give date of registration, name of the owner, and, if applicable, name of person acting for the owner. For each enslaved person, the records show his or her name, sex, age, physical condition, term of servitude, date of emancipation, and, if applicable, information on and compensation for military service.